Ahmed Samir Santawy, a student at the Central European University, was served 1.5 years in prison for supposedly spreading fake news before receiving a presidential pardon. However, for the past year, he has been prevented from returning to Europe to continue his studies and reunite with his partner. This travel appears to be continuing retaliation for his research on the sexual and reproductive rights of women.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/06/free-egypts-former-prisoner-of-conscience/
July 24, 2023
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Office of the President
Al Ittihadia Palace
Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt
p.spokesman@op.gov.eg
Dear President el-Sisi:
The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers, and scholars devoted to the protection and advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for colleagues all over the world.
We are writing in regard to Mr. Ahmed Samir Santawy, a masters student at the Central European University in Vienna, Austria, studying the sexual and reproductive rights of women. We have written to you previously on this case on numerous occasions. While we are heartened to know that he was pardoned and released from prison, we are concerned that for the past year, he has been the subject of an apparent travel ban and prevented from returning to Austria to continue his masters program and reunite with his partner.
He was originally arrested in February 2021 upon returning to Egypt to visit his family while on holiday on charges of being a member of a terrorist group and spreading fake news on social media about the country. He was charged in June 2021 after having numerous beatings and other forms of torture at the hands of state security officers. Since then, he endured a forty-day hunger strike and a retrial in February 2022, which resulted in a conviction despite a lack of evidence.
The CCS is concerned that this is part of a recurring pattern of unannounced travel bans against those perceived to be working on human rights issues and/or as part of NGO’s. These travel bans appear to be implemented without court orders or due process. The CCS is also concerned that Mr. Santawy’s travel ban is retaliation for the topic of his studies rather than because of any actual national security risk.
We write to urge you to allow Mr. Santawy to travel to Austria to continue his studies. He has already suffered greatly during his detainment and deserves the chance to go on with his life, both professionally and personally. At the very least, the terms and justifications of the travel restrictions on Mr. Santawy should be made clear, and he should be afforded the opportunity to appeal the decision.
Thank you for your attention to this serious matter. We will be closely following developments in this case.
Sincerely,
Joel L. Lebowitz, Paul H. Plotz, Walter Reich, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Alexander Greer
Co-Chairs, Committee of Concerned Scientists
CC:
Antony J. Blinken
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520 USA
Phone: (202) 647-4000
Twitter: @ABlinken
Jonathan R. Cohen
Charge d’Affaires ad interim
Embassy of the United States of America, Cairo
5 Tawfik Diab Street
Garden City, Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt
Telephone: (20-2) 2797 3300
Fax: (20-2) 2797 3200
Twitter: @USEmbassyCairo
Motaz Zahran
Ambassador of Egypt to the United States
Embassy of Egypt, Washington DC
3521 International Court NW,
Washington, DC, United States 20008
consulate@egyptembassy.net
Phone: (202) 895-5400
Twitter: @MotazZahran
Sameh Hassan Shoukry
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Egypt Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Masbero-Kornish El Nile Street
Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt
Email: Contact.Us@mfa.gov.eg
Phone: 25796334/39 – 25772500
Fax: 25748822